Couplers



Dec. 3, 1968 M. H. P. A. LEVIE COUPLERS 5 Sheets-Sheet} Filed June 25, 1966 Q Q v Dec. 3, 1968 Y M. H. P. A. LEVlE 3,414,135

COUPLERS Filed June 23, 1966 5 Sheets$heet z 1968 I M. H. P. A. LEVlE 3,414,135

COUPLERS 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed June 25, 1966 M. H. P. A. LEVlE Dec. 3,- 1968 COUPLERS 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed June. 23, 1966 United States Patent 3,414,135 COUPLERS Max Hubert Prophet Alexander Levie, Wolverhampton, England, assignor to F. H. Lloyd & Co. Limited, James Bridge Steel Works, near Wednesbury, Staffordshire, England, a British company Filed June 23, 1966, Ser. No. 559,840 Claims priority, application Great Britain, July 23, 1965, 31,618/ 65 6 Claims. (Cl. 21345) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE Railway buffing and drawgear in which a spring container includes first and second groups of parallel arms with the arms of the second group interdigitated with those of the first. Transverse inner abutment means is adjacent the inner abutment means of the other group and outer abutment means is remote from the outer abutment means of the other group. The inner abutment means of each group lies between the inner and outer abutment means of the other group to be capable of sliding in the space defined by the arms and inner and outer abutment means of the other group.

This invention relates to improvements in couplings for railway and like vehicles. In one known arrangement, the method of transmitting buffing and traction loads to the elastic member is by means of a yoke connected to the coupler head of the Norwegian Hook type for traction loads and a bufiing sleeve and follower for bufiing loads. Traction loads are transmitted from the head through an intermediate drawbar but bufiing loads are transmitted through a surrounding buffing sleeve.

The present invention has a three-fold objective, viz: to provide for interchangeability of coupling means; to provide for variation in combinations of elastic member; and to provide for an assembly leading to a reduction in maintenance time compared with previous types.

As is well known in the art of railway couplings there are a number of forms of coupling head known generically as, Knuckle couplers, Norwegian hook couplers, "Gedge hook and Disk Hook couplers. The first objective of this invention is to provide for easy changeover of coupling means.

In order to fulfill the requirements of the second objective of the invention it is proposed to use a spring container consisting of a first group of parallel arms, a second group of arms parallel to and interdigitated with the arms of the first group, and transverse abutment means on each end of each group, namely on each group inner abutment means adjacent to the inner abutment means of the other group and outer abutment means remote from the outer abutment means of the other group, the inner abutment means of each group lying between the inner and outer abutment means of the other group so as to be able to slide in the space defined by the arms and inner and outer abutment means of the other group. Preferably the abutment means are disks or plates and the outer disks or plates are detachable from the arms. Conveniently each group contains two arms, the arms of each group being in a common plane perpendicular to the plane of the other group. Elastic or energy-absorbing elements are placed between the inner abutment means of one group and the outer abutment means of the other group to form a packaged unit which can be handled and installed in a yoke or other drawgear as a single unit. This spring container is such that variations in the manner or type of elastic element can be made within the confines of space decided by the vehicle dimensions, and the container can be easily inserted or removed from the vehicle as required.

3,414,135 Patented Dec. 3, 1968 In the known arrangement an auxiliary spring acts between the yoke and the container for the main springs to control swivelling of the head. According to another aspect of the present invention an adjustable spring seat attached to the yoke is interposed between the auxiliary spring and the container. By drawing the spring seat into the yoke the container can then be readily freed and removed from the yoke; in use some lost motion would be allowed between seat and yoke to let the auxiliary spring perform its function.

In the accompanying drawings;

FIGURES 1 and 2 show buffing and drawgear with a yoke, a Norwegian hook coupler and the new spring container;

FIGURES 3 and 4 show similar gear with a knuckle coupler and drawbar, in plan and side view;

FIGURES 5a and 5b show similar gear with a gedge hook coupler and drawbar;

FIGURES =6 and 7 show the spring container used with a drawbar instead of a yoke;

FIGURES 8 and 9 illustrate the use of a disk hook and shackle coupler;

FIGURES 10 and 11 show the spring container on a larger scale.

FIGURE 1 shows in side view and FIGURE 2 in plan a Norwegian hook coupler head 1 attached to an intermediate drawbar 2 contained within a butting sleeve 3 which is of rectangular hollow form terminating at the head end with a flanged surface 4 which abuts the rear of the coupler head. The other end of the sleeve has two lugs 5 which in turn contact faces 6 of a follower 7.

The follower 7 has at its rear a large platen face 8 which is in contact with one of the ends of thespring container, and a forward flange face 9 restrained by a lug 10 integral with a guide 11 which in turn is secured to the vehicle frame. The follower has lugs or projecting pieces 12 which are in contact at the faces 6 with the sleeve 3.

The intermediate drawbar 2 is secured to the coupler head 1 by means of a bolt 13 while the other end is arranged to mate with a drawbar fork end 14 (FIGURE 7) or a yoke fork end 15 (FIGURE 1). In this manner the load is transferred between the head and the spring container by either yoke 16 (FIGURES 1 and 2) or drawbar 17 (FIGURES 6 and 7), through a pin 18. This pin allows lateral pivoting of the coupler head when the vehicle is on a curve, and also transmits the traction load to the yoke or drawbar.

For bufling, the load is transmitted to the spring container from the head to the bufiing sleeve 3 through faces 4 and through the sleeve 3 to faces 6 and thence through face 8 to the spring container. The objective of divided thrust through the lugs 5 is to allow lateral movement of the coupler which movement is under control by means of an auxiliary spring 19 acting between yoke or drawbar and the spring container, with the spring 19 and the container being deflected when such angular movement takes place about the pin 18.

It will be seen that with this combination of components the intermediate drawbar 2 and its bolt 13 allow either a Norwegian hook or a Knuckle type coupler 1b (FIGURES 3 and 4) to be attached to the gear as required. Where a disk hook and shackle coupler 20 '(FIG- URES 8 and 9) is employed it is necessary to arrange that the intermediate drawbar 2 and lugs 5 Le. sleeve 3 are integral and are so designed that the end connecting with the fork 14 or 15 will provide for mating faces 6 which contact the follower.

In connection with disk hook and shackle couplers, the improvement is proposed consisting of the use of a support bracket 44 having a flat horizontal surface 45 on which rests a corresponding surface of the coupler head, thus relieving the head of vertical loads and eliminating any tendency of the head to sag with wear.

Where the draft and buff gear are used solely for traction conditions, that is, in those cases having only a gedge book 21 (FIGURE 5) the intermediate drawbar and sleeve are not required, the rear end of hook shank 22 connecting to pin 18 being designed to work with either of the fork ends 14 or 15 as required.

It will be seen therefore that this arrangement of mechanism is suitable for connecting all types of coupler head required for buff and draw movements in a central position, or with a gedge hook under center traction only, to the springs and container by a drawbar or yoke.

The new spring container (FIGURES 1, 2, 6, 7, 10, 11) comprises two slidable casings 23 and 24 with circular inner end plates 29 and 30 each integral with two arms 43, with the arms of each casing being in a common plane perpendicular to that of the arms of the other casing (FIGURE 10). By this means with the end plates adjacent, and in contact, the two casings are slidably interlocked. At each end, adjacent to the outwardly facing bases of the arms, are secured outer end plates 25 by means of screws 26 inserted through tapped holes at the corresponding diagonally opposite corners and locked by nuts, contained within a recess. The arms of casing 23 are interdigitated with those of casing 24. Each casing contains one or more elastic members trapped between its outer end plate and the inner end plate of the other casings. At one end of the unit, preferably at the rear, a small gap 27 is arranged between the arm ends and the outer end plate. The elastic member at this end then has a lesser amount of initial loading; this measure has as its objective :1 more sensitive control of the head when lateral movement is initiated, than would be the case if the gap were omitted.

During loading of the container from bufling or traction loads the rear end plate 25 first closes the gap 27 and the load is then transferred to the arms of the casing 24. The load then not only compresses the rear elastic member 28 against the inner end plate 29 of the front casing 23, but also a similar action of inner end plate 30 of casing 24 compresses the front elastic element 31 against the front outer end plate 25. The elastic or other elements then work in parallel after closure of the gap 27.

To obtain the necessary reactions to the loading in one direction or the other, the container ends abut follower 7 and flanges or lugs 32 of the longitudinal guide 11 which in turn is attached by bolts or other fastenings to the main longitudinal members of the vehicle frame.

In this manner the force to haul the vehicles is obtained via the mechanism and the lugs 10 at the front, or head-stock end, while the lugs 32 at the rear are used under bufiing conditions.

It will be seen that with this arrangement of container the casing arms are arranged in such a manner that mainly circular elastic elements can be partially housed on the inside. Hence, it is possible to use, as energy absorbing means, such components as rubber springs, a single steel spring, or nest of helical steel springs, a hydraulic dashpot, ring spring or such combinations of these components as may be desired to obtain the required performance characteristics.

If required, energy absorbing means of friction types can also be accommodated.

With the use of rubber springs in a yoke-operated container, it is essential that the spring elements and their dividing plates be centrally supported. This is attained by the insertion of cylindrical spindles 42 (FIGURE 1) attached to the plates 25 at their center thus providing the necessary guidance. Such means are not required in a container used with a drawbar since the latter provides the necessary support.

The container and elastic members form a readily removable unit. Moreover access for changing or adjusting the elastic members is easily obtained by removal of the outer end plates 25.

In some couplers e.g. those having a Norwegian Hook type of coupling head the drawbar 17 (FIGURES 6 and 7) has at the rear end a screwed portion carrying an integral nut and sleeve. Between sleeve portion 35 of the nut and the rear outer end plate 25 of the container, a gap is left. Surrounding the sleeve of the nut and axially in line is a helical auxiliary spring 19 which abuts both end plate 25 and a flanged base 37 of thevnut. On screwing the nut inwards along the drawbar a compression load is put into the spring 19 up to a desired amount. On further compression of this spring under loading from the head, the sleeve eventually abuts the rear outer end plate 25 and the spring is relieved of further loading. The objective of this arrangement is to provide sensitive control of the vertical pivoting of the head about the bolt or pin 13, which accommodates the up and down movements between adjacent vehicles when running in a train and allows for head movement through variations in height between loaded and empty coupled vehicles.

It will be seen that the container is of such a design and assembly that it is possible to use this arrangement with either a drawbar inserted through the center (FIG- URES 6 and 7), holes being provided in the component parts to allow for this, or in a yoke which surrounds the whole container (FIGURES 1 and 2).

In the yoke type of assembly it is still desirable to use the principle of auxiliary spring control as described above for drawbar operation, but the manner of application is of a different kind. The manner in which the same control is obtained is as follows (FIGURES 1 and 2): The spring 19 is here contained within a hollow receptacle formed in the rear end of the yoke. Loading of the spring is by means of a flanged cup 38 having at its axial center a hole through which a bolt 39 is inserted. This bolt is screwed through a tapped hole in the center of the base of the receptacle and is locked by means of a nut 40. Two fiat surfaces are made on the screwed portion of the bolt of a size allowing the use of a spanner or similar tool to adjust the spring load by external operation. By allowing a gap 41 between the operating face of yoke end and container outer end plate at the rear of the assembly, a similar action to that in the case of the drawbar gives control of the vertical displacement of the head, since reactions are obtained from compression of the auxiliary spring between the faces abutting at the spring cup 38 and the end of the yoke receptacle.

In cases Where a disk and shackle, or knuckle coupler, are used this auxiliary spring arrangement provides lateral control and further ensures that any slackness which could develop between essential contacting faces through setting of the elastic or other energy absorbing member will be taken up by automatic inherent expansion of the auxiliary spring.

It will be seen that the cup 38 acts as an adjustable seat for spring 19'. By screwing up the bolt 39 the spring can be compressed right into the receptacle in-the yoke, permitting easy removal of the container without any risk of losing the spring, cup, or screw, which remain in the yoke.

The yoke is very much simplified by the use of the new container and auxiliary spring mounting-which also, as explained above, greatly facilitates dismantling and hence maintenance and adjustment.

According to a further feature of the invention, illustrated in FIGURES 2, 3, and 6, a striker plate 46 on the vehicle has a convex arcuate surface so that any load applied to it is radial while a convex surface on the coupler head facing a concave striker plate, could cause tangential slipping forces if the two meet while the head is swivelled.

I claim:

1. In a railway buffing and drawgear, a spring container consisting of a first group of parallel arms, a second group of arms parallel to and interdigitated with the arms of the first group, transverse abutment means on each end of each group, namely on each group inner abutment means adjacent to the inner abutment means of the other group and outer abutment means remote from the outer abutment means of the other group, the inner abutment means of each group lying between the inner and outer abutment means of the other group so as to be able to slide in the space defined by the arms and inner and outer abutment means of the other group and energy absorbing elements placed between the inner abutment means of one group and the outer abutment means of the other group to provide a packaged unit which can be handled and installed in a drawgear as a single unit, with one outer abutment means being attached to its arms with a limited amount of axially play.

2. Railway buffing and drawgear including a resilient assembly and a yoke or drawbar connecting the resilient assembly to a coupling head, the yoke or drawbar having at its forward end a vertical fork and pin whereby different coupling heads may be connected to the drawbar, an intermediate drawbar positively connected to the pin and the head for transmitting traction loads, the head and resilient assembly having opposed abutment surfaces, and a bufiing sleeve carried on the intermediate drawbar and interposed between said abutment surfaces of the head and the resilient assembly for transmitting buffing loads.

3. Railway buffing and drawgear as claimed in claim 2 in which the sleeve at its rear end is forked having two fork arms lying on opposite sides of the pin and cooperating with respective abutment surfaces on the resilient assembly or follower.

4. Railway bufiing and drawgear as claimed in claim 3 in which the coupling head is a disk hook and shackle coupler and the bufiing sleeve is integral with the intermediate drawbar.

5. Railway buffing and drawgear as claimed in claim 4 in which a stationary support bracket is provided having a Hat horizontal surface on which rests a corresponding surface of the coupler head.

6. Railway bufling and drawgear including a resilient assembly comprising a spring container and energy absorbing means therein, a coupling head, a drawbar connecting the head to the spring container, and auxiliary spring carried on the drawbar and acting between the drawbar and the spring container, and an adjustable stop on the drawbar arranged to engage the spring container after the auxiliary spring has been deflected by a predetermined amount, said stop comprising a sleeve nut on the drawbar having an abutment surface engaging the auxiliary spring, and the sleeve of the nut extending within the auxiliary spring to a predetermined spacing from the spring container.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,676,178 7/1928 Drenning 2l348 2,176,223 10/1939 Mussey 213-41 2,176,652 10/1939 Barrows 2l347 2,212,843 8/1940 Metzger 213-64 2,576,214 11/1951 Danielson 213-48 2,639,044 5/1953 Mulcahy 21345 2,880,888 4/1959 Blattner 213-64- DRAYTONE HOFFMAN, Primary Examiner. 

